American trend of trashing wedding dresses catches on here

[caption id="attachment_40237" align="alignright" width="405"] GIRL ON FIRE: This American bride set her wedding dress on fire for her trash-the-dress shoot. Picture: XENA PHOTOGRAPHY[/caption]

THE US wedding photography trend of trash-the-dress has become popular around the world and here in South Africa photographers are also embracing it.

The wedding dress in some families may be a treasured item passed on from generation to generation, although more often it is stored in the back of the wardrobe collecting dust.

However, more and more brides are choosing to "trash-the-dress". Trash the dress – also known as TTD, "fearless bride" or "rock the frock" – has become a style of photography usually done after the wedding, where photographs are taken of the bride in her wedding dress in an environment that contrasts with the elegance and formality of her wedding dress.

A photo shoot of this nature usually takes place in the beach, abandoned buildings, garbage dumps or anywhere that may potentially ruin the dress but look beautiful in the pictures thereafter. The trend started in 1998 in Hollywood in the then famous soapie, Sunset Beach, in a scene where a wedding was interrupted and the bride ran into the sea.

"Trash-the-dress shoots, are slowly catching on in South Africa, being quite popular in the States. Underwater sessions are something different and work well with flowy, light dresses," said former Port Elizabeth photographer, Tarryn Fourie, of NightOwl Media.

"You don't want to get into deep water with a dress that might weigh you down. Sadly, overseas, a bride passed away due to drowning when she got into trouble in a river because her dress was too heavy. To do a shoot like that, make sure it's in a controlled environment, like a pool. And use a photographer with underwater photography gear and experience. "A trash-the-dress shoot is such a fun way to finish off the 'wedding' experience."

The point is to have fun while reliving your wedding day without the formalities of speeches. The shoot may involve ruining the gown – American brides have set their dresses on fire and slashed them to pieces, although few Eastern Cape brides seem to go to such extremes.

Uitenhage photographer Astrid Cordier said: "As a photographer, trash-the-dress gives you so much freedom to explore creative options that are not available on the day due to time constraints. It is a beautiful way to capture the romance and fire between a couple without the stress of the wedding. They can both relax.

"It is also an intimate shoot that shows the bond between the couple after the honeymoon. It is a wonderful experience and it is really magical to capture the love between them this way."

Andrew Elliot, a Grahamstown-based photographer, added that TTD is less about trashing the dress but "a wonderful idea as the couple gets to wear their wedding outfits again and have a more relaxed and informal shoot without worrying about time pressures". He said although many families of newlyweds had "reservations" about TTD, he reassured that of all the shoots he has done, none of the dresses have been ruined. - Sinesipho Mbandazayo